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“You’ll do great,” Cooper says, this time giving me the complete version of his sweet smile. He must remember that I’m closer to my dad. “I need to go to Octavia’s office and see if there’s any news.” He starts walking away then stops. “By the way, it was weird seeing you in the hall last night. What were you doing again?”
“Oh, I couldn’t sleep.”
“Right,” he says, frowning.
I can tell he doesn’t buy it, but he also doesn’t press the matter any further. Instead, he leaves, and I grab a pastry from the cafeteria. Laila is still nowhere to be seen.
I consider sneaking out to see Cyrus before my mumarrives, but then I think better of it. I don’t really want to be high on a vampire bite when I see my mother. So I find a quiet spot in the recreation room, eat mypain au chocolate, and check my phone.
Carrie hasn’t messaged in a while, but I don’t blame her. I’m miles away and have no idea when I’d even be able to see her again. Maybe it’s best to just ghost each other and let the friendship die. But the thought brings a heavy sense of melancholy.
I wonder when I’ll be able to let my past drift away. I’m in a new world now. My old world doesn’t seem to mesh with this one, as much as I’d like it to.
“Don’t get homesick now,” I tell myself out loud.
There’s a message from Dad saying he hopes my meeting with Mum goes well. I send a quick reply of thanks. Then I flick around on social media to while away the time.
It’s Damien who comes to inform us that the guests are arriving, and I join a large group of students to wander out into the foggy island weather and greet parents, sisters, brothers, and friends.
I pull in a deep breath, trying to remember the last time I saw Mum. What are we going to talk about? It’s all a bit too much. I can’t stop thinking about turning around and legging it all the way back to my room, then I catch a glimpse of Laila for the first time since our fight. She’s walking towards someone who looks a lot like an older brother.
“Kira?”
It’s Mum, and her voice is hesitant. I hadn’t heard her approach. And now my heart leaps up into my mouth.
I pull the sleeve of my jumper between my fingers,worrying the hem, and finally turn to face her. “Hi,” I say, lifting a limp hand to give her an awkward little wave.
Mum smiles. Her eyes are full of tears, her smile sad. She hasn’t changed much. Her hair is still short, with blond highlights interrupting the chocolate brown. She steps forward for a hug, and I decide to allow it. When her arms envelop me, I have to admit it feels good, like something I’ve missed but didn’t know I was missing.
“Do you want to go for a walk?” I ask.
“Yes, sweetheart.” She tucks a stray lock of hair behind my ear. “I do. I want to see the school, and I want to know everything about your life.” Her voice cracks. “Don’t hold anything back now.”
I show her the inside of the school first, taking her around the cafeteria and the recreation room. When I take her to my room, Laila and her visitor aren’t there.
“What’s your roommate like?” Mum asks.
I hesitate for a moment, unsure how to describe Laila. Then I settle on, “Quiet.”
Mum nods. “Well, I suppose that’s better than loud.”
We head up to the library, where she marvels at all the books. And after that, we make our way back out into the fog. Eventually, we settle on a bench that looks out to sea.
“The human world can’t access this island,” Mum says, almost to herself. “They can’t even see it. Isn’t that strange?”
I nod. “But they know we exist and we train to keep the Reavers away.”
“They do. They’ve never wanted to get their hands dirty. It’s something they’d rather shy away from.” Mum sighs. “I made a huge mistake, Kira. It’s something I fought with your grandmother about, but it turns out she was right and I waswrong. Mothers have a way of doing that.” She laughs and shakes her head. “Unless, of course, I’m the mother, in which case I always seem to get it wrong. I should have told you about our family, and I should have warned you about the potential of you being called here to the academy. We haven’t had anyone called for three generations now, so I thought you were safe.”
“Why did you fight with Gran?”
“She wanted you to know. She wanted you to learn magic.” Mum stretches out her legs. “She still knew how to perform it. She knew spells and rituals. But I rejected it right from the start. I swear, it’s like there’s no magical blood in my body.”
“Was Gran a necromancer?”
Mum shakes her head. “Not really. She had an affinity with manipulating life, but when it came to resurrection, it was beyond her. Your great-grandmother also rejected magic. She was one of the first to pull away from our line of witches. Though I’m not sure I can blame her, considering what she dealt with.”
“What do you mean?” I examine my mother’s face, the fine lines around her eyes and mouth. The plum shade of lip gloss she’s wearing. She seems tired. But so am I.
